The Children of Orasella
by exclamation
Summary: Someone is after Tommy, but who? What do they want? The mysterious Order of Orasella is hunting him down and the other Rangers need to find a way to save him. But the Order aren't the only ones with secrets. TommyKat TommyKim Chap12: Tommy lies to Jason
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: The start of this story is set during Power Rangers Zeo at some point between A Golden Homecoming and Good as Gold. It diverges from the plot of the TV show to become an AU, but I shouldn't (hopefully) contradict anything before that point. Comments are always welcome, both good and bad.

Orasella is supposed to be a completely made up name, but a google search of various connections of syllables seems to suggest that every possible word exists in some language or other.

There is supposed to be a section break here, but just seems to get rid of them when I upload the document. Rows of hyphens, and signs and other punctuation just seem to get erased. If anyone knows a way to do breaks that stay in the document, I would appreciate it.

Heart beating so fast it might leap out of his chest. Lungs heaving with every breath. Limbs aching from blocking kicks and strikes. Tommy tried to deal a few blows back, but he was too busy trying not to get beaten into one bloody bruise.

There were too many of them. He didn't have a moment to pause and count them, but they seemed to be all around him. Hitting, kicking, throwing him to the ground. All in black, faces covered in ninja masks, they fought with a mixture of every fighting style Tommy had ever come across. Any one of them alone, he might have stood a chance against, but not all of them together.

A punch to his stomach coincided with a sweeping kick into his legs and Tommy went down, smashing hard onto the uneven ground. The breath was knocked out of him and for a moment he was stunned by the impact. That was all that was needed for the attackers to have him thoroughly pinned, vice-like grips on his arms and legs. Tommy couldn't move, but he was almost glad for a second or two of the excuse to just lie there and let oxygen flow to his exhausted muscles. His vision had sparkly dots floating around the edge of it.

One of the attackers walked up to him, leaning over to look down into Tommy's face. The man was completely covered in black cloth, only his eyes visible. But he wore across his chest a gold sash. Tommy had seen this guy before, or at least someone wearing the same sash. He'd never taken part in the fights, just stood and watched the others.

"You're beaten, Power Ranger," the man said. Tommy was too worn out to even care how he knew he was a Ranger.

"He's not beaten while his friends are with him." Jason's voice. And then the black-clothed attackers vanished. No light of teleportation. They just weren't there any more.

"I guess they weren't interested in a fair fight." That was Adam. Then Tommy could see his friends standing over him, crouching by his side. The sight was growing darker, but he still heard them.

"Is he alright?"

"We should get Alpha to check him."

"Let's get him to the power chamber."

Tommy felt the tingling of the teleportation process and the world dissolved around him. He'd passed out before he'd reached the power chamber.

Section Break

Jason lifted Tommy up onto the bed that Billy had pulled from somewhere. Tommy stirred slightly at the movement, but then closed his eyes again. He just seemed to be asleep, which was hardly surprising. The poor guy had barely been able to sleep for two weeks, what with these constant attacks.

Alpha had a scanner out and was waving it over Tommy's body. Jason didn't need that to tell him that Tommy was exhausted and bruised. He'd made jokes about how soon there wouldn't be any skin left on him that was a normal colour, but Jason could tell it was really hurting him. No major injuries, but enough little pains to have him wincing whenever he moved.

All of the Rangers were gathered in the power chamber. They'd been called as soon as Zordon noticed the attack on Tommy. Now they watched, worried and still morphed, helpless to defend their friend from these constant attacks.

"You still don't know who's behind this?" Jason asked Billy, who shook his head.

"They know who we are," said Kat, "or at least Tommy. The guy with the sash called him a Power Ranger."

"They might have figured that out," Jason said, "by the fact that when the Rangers go to his rescue, there's always one missing."

"I doubt it," intoned Zordon's deep voice, "I believe these attackers are targeting Tommy because he is a Ranger."

"But why not the rest of us?" Tanya asked.

"It is possible that they are not aware of the identities of the rest of you." But that didn't make sense to Jason. If they were interested in all the Rangers, why did they run whenever the rest of them showed up?

"Until they figure out why they're doing this," Jason said, "I think one of us should be with Tommy at all times."

"I agree," Zordon said, "These mysterious attackers only seem to strike when Tommy is alone. If he has you with him, he should be safe."

"I'll keep trying to work out who these guys are," Billy said.

Section Break

Tommy woke up, turned his head slightly and saw an unmistakable back. Alpha Five, a red, gleaming robot with a circular head was standing nearby. He was in the power chamber.

"How are you feeling, Tommy?" came the deep, booming voice of the giant head floating in a column of blue liquid. Tommy considered the question. Every part of him ached, but there were no serious pains, nothing to suggest a broken bone or anything. He felt tired and wanted to just curl up in bed for a year. But he was alive. For a while there, he hadn't been sure he'd survive.

"Not too bad," Tommy answered, "considering." His voice came out cracked and raw. It wasn't until he spoke that he realised just how thirsty he was. Billy might have been reading his mind. He stepped out from behind a row of control panels and offered Tommy a bottle of water.

"How long have I been out?" Tommy asked after a long gulp.

"A few hours," Billy answered, "we let you sleep."

"Thanks man."

"You want something to eat?" Tommy nodded. It turned out Billy had a fridge here. It wouldn't be long before there was a spare bed. He spent more time in the power chamber than he did anywhere else.

Tommy gratefully gulped down a sandwich as Billy told him what had been discussed. It was probably proof of how worn out he was that he didn't complain he could look after himself at the suggestion of the other Rangers acting as bodyguards. He wanted the attacks to stop, but more than that he wanted answers. He was the only target, and he'd been fighting off these ninjas for nearly three weeks. They'd turned up in his house twice. Mondo must have noticed something was wrong, because his monster attacks were more frequent.

"Have you found out anything yet?" Tommy asked. Billy shook his head, but it was Zordon who replied.

"There are many organisations in the galaxy that wear plain black, ninja costumes, but none have the mode of attack that you have been experiencing."

Tommy sighed. He just had to hope they'd figure something out soon. He didn't know if he could take another attack like today's. The guy with the sash had been right. He was beaten.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Thank you to those who reviewed chapter one. I'm still working on a nice way to do section breaks. Advice would be welcome.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

The plan seemed to be working. It was at best a temporary solution, but Tommy had spent the past three days with the other Rangers. His parents had been a little worried about the fact he wanted to spend each night at a different friend's house, or have the gang over, but they saw a group of teenagers studying together and still managing to get up on time for school.

Tommy was feeling a lot more optimistic as he walked with Kat between the school and the youth centre. He'd had plenty of sleep, had caught up with his school work and felt ready to take on the whole machine empire if necessary. Billy and Zordon were still no closer to figuring out who was behind this, but Tommy didn't mind so much now. Everything seemed much better now that he wasn't half-dead from exhaustion.

He was able to enjoy a quiet walk through the park, trees and bushes alongside the path, the sun warm overhead, a pretty girl by his side. He held Kat's hand as they walked.

The attackers came out of nowhere, as usual. Tommy dropped Kat's hand and kicked out at the first of the black-clad enemy, seeing Kat starting to tackle a couple of her own. But they were too many and Tommy hadn't been expecting this. Two of the ninjas held his arms and the park dissolved around him. Suddenly he was standing on one of the cliffs by the beach.

He managed to throw off one of the guys who was holding him, but more grabbed his arm in his place. A kick to the back of his legs forced Tommy to his knees and at least three pairs of hands held him there, while someone's foot rested on his ankles so he couldn't try to stand.

"Let go of me!" Tommy yelled, but the crowd of ninjas who surrounded him said nothing. The guy with the sash stepped in front of him.

"Where's Kat?" Tommy asked.

"Still in the park," sash-guy answered. "She is not our concern."

"What do you want with me?"

"The green power coin."

Tommy hadn't really known what to expect, but there'd been something he hadn't expected, that would be it.

"The green power coin's dead," he said.

"Then you'll have no concerns about handing it over to me." It sounded like he was smiling, but the man's face was completely covered by the mask. His confidence set a white hot rage burning inside Tommy. These guys had put him through hell and they expected him to just give up!

"I'm not going to give you anything," Tommy snarled. He tried to pull free, but another pair of hands seized hold of his shoulders. Those that already held him twisted his arms painfully up behind him until he was sure his shoulders were about to break. He wasn't going anywhere.

"You said it yourself: the Dragonzord power is gone. Is it really worth all this? Give us the coin and you'll never see us again. We won't hurt you, your friends or your family ever again." Tommy didn't fail to see the veiled threat. No mention of what would happen to his friends if he refused to cooperate. The man held out his hands in front of him and a sword appeared in his grasp. He lowered it, the point hovering millimetres in front of Tommy's throat. He felt as though a single swallow could slice his neck open.

"Is one powerless coin really worth your life?" sash-guy asked. Then he stepped backwards, the sword vanishing as he did so. "Hand over the power coin and you will live." Then they all disappeared, and Tommy was left alone on the cliff top. He massaged some life back into his shoulders as he stood and then teleported to the power chamber.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

"I thought all the power coins were destroyed," said Kat after Tommy had told them all what had happened. Kat was perfectly fine. The ninjas had grabbed Tommy and then disappeared, leaving Kat without so much as a bruise.

"The green coin wasn't destroyed," Tommy answered, "but it lost its power ages ago. I used it to be the Green Ranger, but Rita and Zedd drained me, and the coin, of the power."

"Is it possible that someone could get the power back?" Jason asked.

"It is possible," Zordon responded. That wasn't the answer Jason had been hoping for. "After all," Zordon went on, "Rita and Zedd managed to create an evil clone of Tommy that had the Green Ranger power."

"Then I can't turn over the coin," Tommy said, "I can't let evil get their hands on it." Jason looked at Tommy, sitting on a table, bruised and broken and still defiant. The same strength which made Tommy the Ranger leader would be his undoing.

"Be reasonable, bro," Jason said, "they'll kill you. We can always find a way to get the coin back."

"Back from where? We've no idea where these guys are coming from."

"It's not worth dying," Kat said. But Tommy was stubborn.

"Jason and Katherine are correct," Zordon stated, "your life is worth more than the Dragonzord power coin."

"We can't trust these people to keep their promise. They'll probably try to kill us anyway once they get the coin."

"It's probably verses definitely," Jason said. It said a lot about Tommy that he was still so determined to keep the coin safe, even after what these attackers had done. Jason admired him for that, but it wasn't going to stop him saving Tommy's life. Hopefully, Tommy would forgive him for it.

"We just need to find a way to fight them," Tommy said, "Billy, have you had any luck tracing their teleportation."

"I'm not certain it is teleportation," Billy replied, "but there are energy residues at the points where they appear and disappear. It is possible I can isolate the particular frequencies they use and track them to the source. But it'll take time."

"Do it," Jason said, "we'll just have to try and keep Tommy safe until you figure this out."

"Thanks, man," Tommy said. He held out his right hand, closed into a fist. Jason knocked his own against it. Jason knew he was abusing Tommy's trust.

"I'll stay here and help Billy," Jason said, "Rocky, Adam, you want to go with him."

"Sure thing. We'll call at the first sign of trouble."

"We'll keep watch at all times," Alpha stated. Tommy nodded and they teleported out.

"We can't just let him go," Kat said, "He's not safe outside of the power chamber; those guys could come back any moment."

"I know," said Jason, "Alpha, where is the green power coin?"

"Jason, you do realise you are going against Tommy's wishes?" asked Zordon.

"I know."

"The power coin was stored away in a separate room along with many devices which the Power Rangers have used that may be useful in the future."

"I think I know where it is," Billy said and headed for the door. He wasn't objecting to this, and neither were the girls. Jason took that as a sign he was doing the right thing.

Billy came back a few minutes later, the coin in his hand. He apologised for taking so long: "I didn't realise how much stuff we kept." He held out the coin and Jason took it, feeling the weight of it in his palm with a slight sense of nostalgia for the days when they'd used these things.

"Attempting to contact Tommy's attackers could be very dangerous," Zordon warned.

"I know." Jason glanced at Billy, "Keep working on that energy trace thing in case they break their promise."

"Good luck," both Kat and Tanya said. Jason reached for his communicator and teleported out.

Jason stood on the cliff top that Tommy had so recently been threatened on.

"Hello!" he yelled, "Are you guys still here? I have something for you!" He turned round slowly as he shouted, looking over the rocky landscape and seeing no sign of black-clad warriors.

"I want to talk to you," he shouted, holding out the power coin.

"You have the green coin." Jason spun round. Standing where there had been empty ground a moment earlier was a man, all in black, his face covered and a gold sash across his chest. He was unarmed, but Jason wasn't about to forget what Tommy had said about the sword appearing out of nowhere.

"I'll give you the power coin if you swear to leave Tommy alone," Jason said. He'd closed his fist around the coin, lowering his hand to his side. No need to make it easier for these people.

"Does Tommy know you're here?" the voice beneath the mask sounded amused.

"Does it matter? You get the coin, you leave my friend alone." Jason tried to sound fierce, but he knew he was in no position to bargain with these people.

A kick caught Jason completely off guard. One of the ninjas had appeared behind him. He blocked a strike, but another of the ninjas was there, dealing a swift kick to Jason's right wrist. He gasped in pain, the shock making him loosen his grip and the coin tumbled to the ground. Jason dived for it, but he was surrounded by ninjas. They held him back, while the man in the sash picked up the power coin.

"I made the deal with Tommy, not with you," he said. Then they were gone. Jason swore under his breath. He'd been so stupid. This must have been what sash guy was hoping for, luring him out into the open.

There was a bleeping from his wrist. Jason pushed a button on his communicator.

"Jason here."

"We need help." Adam's voice, frantic. Tommy!

Jason teleported to Tommy's house just in time to see the ninjas disappearing with him.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

A sphere of multi-coloured light appeared in midair near the edge of Angel Grove lake. It hovered there for several seconds, the colours shifting and shimmering. It was translucent, the other side of the lake visible through it. Then there was something inside. Two somethings. They started tiny, but grew rapidly. Indistinct through the patterns of light.

Then the sphere vanished and two people toppled out of midair.

"It definitely moved us somewhere," one of them said. A boy.

"I know," the other said, this time a girl, "now get off me, you great lump." The boy had landed on top of the girl when the fell from the sphere of light. Now he scrambled clear and both stood. They were similar enough in appearance that it would be easy to guess that they were siblings. Aged about twelve, neither of them looked at all threatening or menacing, though each was clearly in excellent physical shape. The girl opened the bag she carried and looked inside.

"Is it alright?" the boy asked.

"Seems to be," the girl replied.

"Good." The boy reached behind him, under the baggy, blue t-shirt he wore and felt for the hilt of the knife that was fixed to his belt. Still there, hidden under his clothing but accessible at a moment's notice.

"This is definitely Angel Grove," the girl said.

"Then let's go find Jason."

The girl shouldered her bag and checked that her knife was still in its place at the back of her belt.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's note: Thank you to the two people who've left reviews. To everyone else, please let me know what you think of the story.

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Jason looked set to thump something. He was angry at losing both Tommy and the coin and, with no one else handy, he was blaming himself. Billy was trying to work on tracing the energy residues of the ninjas, but kept looking up to see Jason pacing madly about the power chamber. The rest of the Rangers didn't look much better, but Jason's pacing was occasionally interrupted by muttered curse words.

As a rule, Jason didn't swear.

Billy didn't want to get in Jason's way when he figured out how to find these ninjas.

Fortunately, it was getting easier. The number of times Tommy's kidnappers had appeared and disappeared in the past couple of hours meant that Billy had a lot of fresh residue to analyse. It was still difficult, trying to find a way to follow an unfamiliar form of transportation. It was made more difficult still by having Jason's pacing in his peripheral vision to distract him.

And the other Rangers asking him how he was doing every other minute.

"I think I may have something," Billy said, "now will you shut up and let me work on it!" The others took a step backwards. They weren't used to him losing his temper, but Billy cared about Tommy as much as the rest of them. He had to find a way to find him. They'd not been able to locate him despite all of their equipment and the communicator signal wasn't getting through.

The Rangers kept their distance and kept quiet, except for when Billy told them to fetch the various bits of equipment he needed. A machine was taking shape on the workbench.

"Right," Billy said at last, "providing all my calculations are exactly right and if my educated guesses turn out to be correct, this thing should follow the energy back to its source, allowing us to teleport after Tommy."

"Us?" Jason asked.

"Yes," Billy replied, "the device only works one way. You'll need me there to make the necessary adjustments to get back. That is, assuming that we get there." Billy would only offer the odds of success being about fifty-fifty. He wasn't even completely confident that it would take them anywhere. The thing had been cobbled together from old teleportation circuitry and some hardware from the power chamber that Alpha would now need to replace. It was a slightly misshapen sphere about the size of a person's head, with a circular handle running around the equator.

"What are we waiting for?" Tanya asked.

"I don't think we should all go," Billy said, "it's not very big and I'm not sure how much power it will need to take us to Tommy. Besides, someone should be here in case King Mondo attacks." He didn't say that someone should stay so that they didn't all die when this thing blew up.

"I'm going," said Jason.

"What if we need Pyramitus?" Rocky asked.

Jason glared at him. "I'm going," he insisted. None of them wanted to argue with that expression.

"I'll go too," Adam said. Jason nodded. Billy picked up the device. It was surprisingly heavy for its size and he was grateful when Adam and Jason both put their hands on the handle.

"We'll go from Tommy's house," Billy said, "since that's their most recent disappearance point. Alpha, prepare to teleport."

"Teleporting now."

"Good luck," intoned Zordon, "and may the power protect you."

A moment later and there were standing in Tommy's bedroom. The signs of the recent struggle surrounded them: broken ornaments, toppled furniture, books scattered on the floor. Billy sent a prayer up to any deity that might be listening. They had to get Tommy back.

"Hold on tight," Billy said, "and cross your fingers." He pressed the on switch.

For a few seconds nothing happened and Billy began to think he'd made a mistake. Then the device nearly wrenched his arms out of their sockets. It was moving, and moving fast. The bedroom had vanished and suddenly they were surrounded by nothing but darkness. There wasn't the slightest trace of light, but Billy could still clearly see Jason and Adam. They were, like him, struggling to keep a grip on the device as it raced in some unknown direction.

Billy hoped desperately that he hadn't made a mistake in calculations and that he was right about how to follow the energy. If not, they could materialise anywhere in the galaxy, or even further afield.

Then he slammed into something hard. A few moments to catch his breath and recover from the shock, then Billy was looking around himself. They were lying on the floor, the device between them. It had clearly suffered the same impact as them, because a piece had fallen off. Billy stood up cautiously, testing out bruised limbs. Jason was already on his feet and looking around.

They were in a short corridor. The floor was of white tiles, the walls and ceiling smooth and painted white. Coloured lights were pointed at the white to leave multi-coloured patterns. As he watched, the colours shifted and changed. There were no doors, but there was a junction in each direction only a few metres away.

"Alright," said Jason in a tone barely above a whisper, "we'll try and find somewhere where you can hide and fix the device. Then I'll look for Tommy."

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The brother and sister walked in to the youth centre and looked around. There were teenagers sitting at tables chatting, or working out on the weights machines around the room. A couple of kids were in the middle of the room running through katas on the mats.

"I don't see him," said the boy.

"Then let's ask." The girl led the way to a juice bar, where an overweight man was wiping down the counter.

"What can I get you?" he greeted them cheerfully.

"We're actually looking for someone," the girl said. "A guy called Jason. We were told he hangs out here a lot."

"Jason, yeah," the guy behind the counter said, "He comes here most days after school with his friends. Not seen him today though."

"Do you know where he might be?"

"'Fraid not. He might be in the park."

"Thanks anyway."

"You want me to give him a message if I see him?"

"No, that's OK."

"I don't suppose you know his address?" the boy asked. The guy behind the counter shook his head.

"Never mind." The girl thanked him again and then the two headed for the door. The boy paused, looking across to where a teenager was practising gymnastics on a balance beam.

"We can't," the girl said.

"I hadn't said anything," her brother complained.

"I know what you're thinking and we can't go to Florida."

"Just to see her."

"We can't," the girl insisted, "because if I saw her, I know I'd want to save her."

The boy sighed and then headed outside, his sister right behind him. They both knew what they were here to do. Kimberly Hart would die, but it wouldn't be at their hands. They were here only for Jason Lee Scott.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Thanks to the people who reviewed the last chapter. It's always good to know what people think.

This chapter is intended to be going on at exactly the same time as the previous one.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Tommy's bedroom dissolved around him and suddenly he was standing in a huge, round room. The ninjas let go of him, backing off to form a wide circle around him. Tommy looked round. The room was some sort of arena. The circular floor was surrounded by tiers of seat rising up to a dome ceiling made of glass. Overhead was a view of stars.

There were four archways between the rows of sets, doorways leading out to the rest of this place, but there were too many of the ninjas. Besides, Tommy had no idea where he was.

One of the doors opened and the man with the sash walked through. The black-clothed watchers parted to let him through to stand before Tommy. The man held the sword in his hand.

"You're not going to make me change my mind," Tommy said.

"You don't feel like giving me the green coin?" There was that trace of amusement in the man's voice again. "Your friend the gold Ranger thought differently." He held out his left hand, palm open to reveal the small coin. Tommy recognised it instantly. No wonder Jason had been so quick to agree with him in the power chamber.

Tommy darted forward to try and grab the coin while it was held out. No such luck. The man caught him with a blow to the stomach and a sweeping kick round his legs. Tommy ended up on the floor. The watching ninjas hadn't moved. He pulled himself to his feet as sash guy turned and called:

"Bring the Ranger his weapon."

"So much for your promise to leave me alone then."

"That was if you gave me the coin."

A figure stepped through the lines of black, holding a sword to Tommy, hilt first. Tommy just stared at it in disbelief. This was impossible. A white sword with a curved blade and a unique hilt.

"It's good to see you again," spoke the tiger's head decoration on the hilt of the sword. Saba.

"This is a trick," Tommy said.

"Take the sword or you will fight unarmed," said sash guy.

"I am most definitely real," Saba said. The tone of voice was exactly right and the white sabre looked identical. Tommy reached out and took the hilt in his hand. It felt real enough and the surge of power rushed through his power. The weapon was adding to his strength, making him ready to take on all the evil in the universe.

Tommy smiled and turned to face his opponent.

He blocked the first strike easily, giving one of his own. Testing the waters, seeing how good the sash guy was. Pretty good, Tommy decided after the first few moves, all blocked and parried by both sides. The circle of ninjas moved with them. Tommy might drive his opponent back or be forced to dodge sideways, but the circle of black-clothed figures moved so that the two of them were always in the centre.

At least they weren't interfering.

Sash guy came in with an attack of sudden swiftness. Tommy barely dodged it, backing off as well as he was able. This guy had been holding back, he realised and suddenly doubted he was good enough to beat him. He needed more power. He tried to draw it from Saba, gain strength from that which lay within the sword.

It took him a few moments to realise the blade had gained a faint glow and a couple more to realise that sash guy had stopped attacking him. Then Tommy ceased caring about the ninjas and just fixed his eyes on the sword.

It grew longer and the blade straightened. The tiger's head vanished completely. The sword grew heavier in Tommy's hand, the crosspiece widening. The glow hung about it shimmering slightly as the entire form of the thing altered. Less than a minute after the metamorphosis had begun, Tommy held a sword identical to the one in his opponent's hand.

There came a cheer from those assembled.

Tommy looked at the sword in his hand and he understood. This was all a test. He had proved his strength and his endurance and his determination to protect an object of value. Now he had shown them that he could draw on the power of the Sword of Orasella. They had had to be so careful because their secret was too dangerous to allow him to learn of it unless he was truly a destined Bearer of the Sword.

"You are welcome here," said sash guy, pulling off his mask, "as a friend and ally. No longer will you be threatened by us."

"I know that," Tommy said, "now do you feel like telling me how I know?"

"One of the powers of the Sword of Orasella is to allow you to know the intentions of others." Tommy studied the man in front of him. He was in his late twenties, perhaps early thirties. There was a thin scattering of grey in his brown hair, but he was still fit and healthy, his face still holding the attraction of youth while his eyes were tempered by experience.

"My name is Garin," said sash guy, "and I have been a Bearer of the Sword for thirteen years."

"Sword," said Tommy, "not swords?"

"There is only one Sword of Orasella, but it can be many places at once. In the history of our order, there have been as many as twelve Bearers at the same time. When a new Bearer is chosen, it is a sign that some momentous event is about to transpire, or that the old Bearer is soon to die. Or both." The man gave a smile, but Tommy could tell that Garin was worried. He expected that he wouldn't live very much longer. Tommy wondered if he knew this from the man's expression, or from the Sword he held, but he didn't have time to think long; Garin was still speaking:

"You will find the Sword will alter its appearance to allow you to carry it in public. Only here, in the Temple of Orasella, will it take its true form. Elsewhere, it will look very different."

"It'll look like Saba?"

"Perhaps, perhaps not. We gave it that shape so that you would trust it and try to draw strength from it. It was the only way to see if you were a destined Bearer."

Tommy was suddenly angry. These guys had been making his life hell for nearly three weeks and now Garin was acting like it was all OK, because it had been about the Sword. Tommy was tempted just to throw the thing at his feet and walk away. But something was telling him this was important. Perhaps some Ranger instinct, perhaps the weapon in his hand.

"What do you do?" Tommy asked, "What does the Sword of Orasella protect?"

"Come with me and I will show you."

The circle of ninjas parted and Tommy let himself be led from the room. He followed the man along a hallway that was entirely white, but lit by multi-coloured lights. Everything was clean and well looked after. They passed a few people, all wearing the black, ninja outfits, but these were unmasked. There seemed to be no fixed age. Tommy found himself staring in surprise as he saw a girl who looked like she couldn't have been older than ten.

Garin took him to a room that might have been a shrine. Most of the room was white, but there was gold decoration here as well. And in the centre of the opposite wall was a small table, covered in cloth embroidered in gold. Resting in an ornate stand was a huge gem, golden in colour, that was glowing bright and beautiful.

"The Gem of Orasella," Garin said, "our greatest treasure and the source of our power, but in the hands of our enemy it could bring about the downfall of the entire universe."

"How is your enemy?" Tommy asked, "The Machine Empire?"

"Far worse." Garin told him. He explained about their enemy and her powers and why it wasn't safe to speak her name. He told Tommy about the need for absolute secrecy, the importance of hiding what they did from everyone, even those good and honourable. Especially the good and honourable. He told Tommy about the duties of the Sword Bearer and what was at risk. He went through all the things that the gem was able to do, in the hands of good or evil. He described what it was safe for them to use it for, and what would alert the enemy to their whereabouts.

"And," Garin finished off, "now that you know our secret you have to join us, or you must die." Tommy nodded. The threat was unnecessary now. With what he had just learned, he had to help them. Not because he was a destined Sword Bearer, but because he'd promised once, several years ago, to defend the world from evil. This was different, but also exactly the same.

Tommy walked to the crystal and placed a hand on its surface. It felt slightly warm to the touch, but a moment later he didn't care about the sensation. He was lost in a wave of images and sounds. He saw death and pain and heard the screams of the dying. He saw a mound of bodies being piled into a mass grave. He saw two babies in a hospital. A girl wrapped her arms around him in an embrace and then kissed his cheek. He heard a voice he knew by heart saying that she loved him. He heard his own voice, calling the Power Rangers to battle. And he saw Jason, eyes silvered and reflecting the world like they were mirrors, with no soul looking out of them.

He snatched his hand away, unable to bear what was staring at him in that vision.

"You are now under the protection of Orasella," Garin said. "Your mind is safe and your soul your own. As Sword Bearer, you are not bound to the order in the same way that all other members are, but our laws exist for a reason and you should abide by them. Tell no one of our existence. Tell no one you are a member. Tell no one of Orasella or our enemy. Kill any who may be made to serve her."

"I understand," Tommy said. And he did. Perhaps an hour ago he'd been at home, unaware of any of this. His brain felt stuffed, too much information in too short a time. But it made sense. He was certain of everything he was told, and he also knew that that was due to the sword.

He looked at it and saw it change again. Shape and form altered completely so it became unrecognisable for what it was, but still very familiar. A short blade of black, with gold and green decoration. The dragon dagger.

At least he'd be able to explain away the need for the coin when he went back to the others.

The door opened and a flustered-looking young man came in. He was slightly out of breath, clearly having been running.

"Sir, there are intruders in the temple. Two Power Rangers and one other."

Tommy looked at Garin and didn't need to Sword to tell him what the older man intended to do. He would kill Tommy's friends for entering this place. And with what Tommy now knew, he wasn't certain that it was the wrong decision.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's note: Don't be surprised if I don't update very often for a bit. Exams may be over now (Functional Programming went well, but I'm not so sure about Matrices and Forms) but I've got a three week open assessment in Algorithms for Graphical Models.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Jason led the way as they walked through a maze of corridors. They passed doors and tried some of them. A few were locked. Most opened into what appeared to be bedrooms.

"I guess a lot of people live here," Adam said.

"Then where are they?" Jason asked and immediately regretted it. A group of black-clad ninjas rounded a corner, ready to fight.

"Stay behind us," Adam told Billy.

"That might not be much help," Billy said. Jason glanced behind him and saw another group there as well. He didn't have much time to worry about it before the attack began. The narrow corridor meant that the ninjas' advantage of numbers was diminished, but there were still far more of them than there were Rangers.

Jason and the others held their own for several minutes, but there were more ninjas arriving to replace any that got hurt or tired. The Rangers didn't have such a luxury, and Billy didn't have powers any more. None of the ninjas here fought as well as the one with the gold sash, but that was no help.

"Stop!" a voice called. Jason turned to look and saw one of their enemy had Billy on the floor, a foot pressed on his chest and a sword waiting beside his neck. This man wore a red sash. He was taller than the man Jason had fought on the cliffs. It was hard to tell with the mask, but Jason had little doubt he'd kill Billy.

Jason and Adam stopped fighting.

Multiple pairs of hands forced them to their knees and held them still. Someone pulled Jason's morpher from his belt and handed it to the sash-wearer. Another ninja handed over Adam's. Billy's machine was lying on the floor in several pieces.

One of them must have brought rope from somewhere because Jason felt his hands being tied behind him. Billy was pulled up from the floor only to be tied as well.

"Where's Tommy?" Jason demanded.

The man with the red sash stepped in front of him. "Worry less about your friend," he said, "and more about yourself. It is death to trespass in our temple." The man looked at his followers. "Take them to the cells to await the Sword Bearer."

Jason was hauled to his feet and pushed down a corridor. He was surrounded by the ninjas and had very little chance of fighting with his hands tied behind him. If he strained his neck he could see Billy and Adam being forced along the same route.

They had spent a while wandering this place in vain, but with their guards it took less than a minute for them to reach a long staircase. It was of white, with pleasant, carved banisters. The coloured lights made interesting patterns on the walls. The whole thing would fit better in a moderate-quality hotel than a mysterious temple filled with ninjas.

Jason wasn't surprised as they were taken to the very bottom of the stairs, down past several floors. He'd been expecting some damp, mouldering dungeon and rather welcomed the sight of another clean, white corridor. It was long and straight, with no sign of bends or corners. Just a lot of doors. At least a hundred in each direction, placed quite close together. How many prisoners did they expect to keep here?

The fact that they were shoved through the door right in front of the stairs suggested that maybe the cells weren't particularly full.

The room the three found themselves in was small, with a narrow bench running around the sides of the room. There was no other furniture in the room and no beds. Either they weren't expected to be comfortable, or they weren't expected to be here very long.

"What now?" Adam asked. Jason wished he had an answer.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

"We can give you time," Garin said, "if you want to say goodbye." Tommy was sitting in what was some sort of security centre, which seemed completely out of place in the temple. Modern computer monitors showed him a view of a cell where Billy, Adam and Jason were trying to untie the ropes around each other's wrists.

Tommy was staring at them and remembering too many good times, too many occasions when they had saved his life. He couldn't just stand aside and let Garin kill them, no matter how good the reasons were.

"There must be a way for them to live," Tommy said, "They don't know anything. Can't you just let them go?"

"No one can know of us," Garin said, "It's too dangerous."

"They don't know any more than they did when you were testing me. Please, they're my friends. They came here to save me."

"We can't allow outsiders to go free."

"Then invite them to join the order."

"We can't. The Power Rangers have their own enemies. We have ours. If we invited them to join, their loyalties would be torn."

"And mine aren't?" Tommy tore his eyes away from the screen to look Garin in the eyes. There was sadness in the other man's face, but resolve too. He wasn't about to change his mind.

"We don't choose the Sword Bearer. Destiny, fate and the Gem of Orasella choose. Your purpose is to protect the Sword. You aren't a true member of the order."

"But the Order of Orasella is supposed to stand for good. If you kill two Power Rangers, you'll be handing over the Earth to evil."

"Better one planet than the whole universe. Besides, we can give the morphers back to Zordon. He can choose other defenders of the planet."

Tommy put his elbow on the desk in front of him, balancing his head on a hand as he stared at the screen again. There had to be some way to save them. Somehow. They hadn't done anything wrong. They didn't know anything that could be a threat to the order. They didn't know the name of the enemy.

Suddenly Tommy straightened. "Billy isn't a Power Ranger anymore," he said, "Can't he join?"

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

The girl sank down on the grass with a sigh. Her brother sat down beside her. His feet were hurting. It seemed they'd walked across half the town and no one had any idea where Jason was.

"I suppose we could go to the temple," he said.

"No," she said, "We'd get half-way through our story and they'd cut Jason's head off. We have to at least try to save him." The boy nodded.

He looked at his sister. A girl, but because of sibling rivalry and a good deal of practice, she was as good as him at martial arts. Perhaps better. She was always so strong, the one he relied on more than anyone else in their crazy, mixed-up lives. But he knew she wasn't strong enough for this. When it came to it, she wouldn't be able to kill Jason, even with all they knew and all they'd seen.

And he was glad. She shouldn't have to live with the nightmares of seeing a familiar face die in front of her by her hand.

So he'd do it.

If Jason discovered the secret of Orasella, he would do what Tommy wasn't able to. He would slice through Jason's neck himself.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Author's note: So, Tommy's joined the ninjas. Billy might be joining. Jason and Adam are being put to death. And the twins are being mysterious. I will explain about those two at some point.

I'll try and put the next chapter up soon.

Thanks to Marius Girl and Ginastar for reviewing. Anyone else who feels like telling me what they think, please do so.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: I apologise for the delay, I'm in the middle of an open assessment that involves programming in a language I don't particularly like to do things that the lecturer didn't explain very well. In a fortnight, I may have more time to write.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jason was on his feet and poised for action the moment the cell door opened. Billy was standing behind him, wishing he felt less helpless. He knew some martial arts, but nowhere near as much as the others and without a power coin or a zeo crystal to back them up, he knew he wouldn't be much use in a fight against these guys. The man with the red sash had returned, a few of his flunkies beside him. This time he wasn't holding a sword, but a gun. Something sleek and metal and definitely not on sale in any normal shop on Earth.

"You're the one called Billy?" the man asked, looking directly at him. He didn't comment on the fact that they were all untied now.

"Yes," Billy answered.

"Come with us now."

"Why him?" Jason demanded. "Take me instead."

The man chuckled. "Still trying to be a hero, Ranger? Don't worry, the Sword Bearer will come for your head soon."

"It's OK," Billy said, stepping past him. He was surprised at how calm his voice sounded, given that these people were probably taking him off to kill him. Jason grabbed his arm and Billy turned, giving him a smile.

"The Rangers always win, right?" Billy said.

"We'll find a way out of this," Jason said. He sounded about as confident as Billy felt.

Billy stepped outside the cell and heard the door close behind him with a very final thud. Two ninjas took hold of one of Billy's arms each and led him towards the staircase. The grip wasn't particularly tight, but there was the hint that it might be.

The man with the sash walked in front of them, a couple of the other flunkies walked behind.

"Are you in charge?" Billy asked the sash guy. Might as well satisfy his curiosity if they were about to kill him.

"I lead the soldiers of the order," the man answered, "they will follow my commands."

"And you're going to order them to kill me?"

"It's for the Sword Bearer to decide when to kill outsiders."

A flicker of hope danced across Billy's mind. "So, he might decide not to kill us?"

"I said 'when' not 'if'. No outsider who enters our temple can ever leave alive. But those with useful information or skills may be kept prisoner for a time."

It astounded Billy that anyone could sound so calm when talking about killing people. At least most of the bad guys they faced had the decency to sound maniacal when they plotted. This man just talked about it in the same tone of voice most people would use for discussing the weather.

By this point, they had walked up several flights of stairs and Billy was beginning to feel slightly out of breath. Clearly he'd gotten somewhat out of shape since he'd stopped fighting monsters every other day.

"So, what sort of information are you hoping to beat out of me?" Billy asked.

"I didn't ask." Unfortunately, he also didn't deny the possibility of torture being used. Billy wondered about his chances if he tried to run, but the sash guy still held the gun.

The group reached a landing and sash guy opened a door, leading them through into a corridor that looked much like every other one Billy had seen since he arrived. The doors in this one were spaced somewhat further apart, but there was little else to distinguish it. He wondered how these people learned their way around. Soon, they stopped in front of a door. Sash guy opened it and then stepped aside.

"Go in," he told Billy.

Billy hesitated for a moment, then walked in. The room wasn't the torture chamber he'd been anticipating. It was a pleasant, white room with some gold decoration. The only furniture was a table supporting a golden gem. But Billy was focussed on the other occupant of the room.

"Tommy? You're alright?"

The two clasped hands. Billy was vaguely aware of the door closing with sash guy and the flunkies outside.

"What's going on here?" Billy asked. He noticed the dragon dagger in Tommy's hand. He wasn't sure which surprised him most, that these people allowed Tommy to be armed, or that it was with a blade that had been lost along with the green powers.

"Everything they did to me was a test," Tommy said.

"Huh?"

"To see if I was destined to be a Bearer of the Sword of Orasella." He held up the dragon dagger. And then it wasn't the dragon dagger. It grew into a sword, long and straight, with a simple design of lines on the hilt but otherwise no pattern. Billy took a step backwards. There was something strange about Tommy and the way he look at the blade in his hands. Besides, Billy hadn't forgotten what the guy with the sash had said about the Sword Bearer killing outsiders. There could well be evil brainwashing going on here.

"I take it you are destined," said Billy cautiously.

"The Order of Orasella fights a great evil, Billy. An evil that could destroy the entire universe. And apparently I'm supposed to be a part of it." He stopped looking at the sword and stared Billy right in the eyes. Whatever was going on here, the person looking at him was definitely Tommy, and he was scared. "I don't know what to do, Billy."

"Help us get out of here."

"I can't. The order kill anyone who knows the slightest thing about them. And they can get everywhere. Even if I manage to get you and Jason and Adam out of here, they'll hunt you down and cut of your heads."

Billy remembered the comment sash guy had made about someone coming for Jason's head. "Why cut off our heads? There are lots of ways to kill someone. Why that one?"

"The order's enemy is telepathic. She gets inside people's brains and turns them into her minions. If someone thinks about her name, or about the gem," Tommy glanced at the crystal behind him, "then she can sense it. They can be galaxies away, but she can still use it to get inside their heads and learn everything they know and turn them into someone utterly unlike the person they were. The only way to stop someone who's become a servant of the enemy is by cutting off their head."

"They told you this?"

"And I saw it. The gem," Tommy looked at the golden crystal again, "can show people the past and the future. Well, a possible future anyway. It showed me what the enemy can do. That's why the order have to be so carefully about secrecy. Not even the most trustworthy person can know, because only members of the order are safe." Billy couldn't quite see how that would work. But if it was true, secrecy was definitely an important issue.

"The order are really strict," Tommy went on, "about not letting any outsiders know the slightest thing about them, because as soon as anyone knows something, they're at risk. If the enemy found out how to get into this temple, she'd get the gem and then she'd be able to use it to rule the entire universe."

"With a fortune telling crystal?"

"It has way more power than that, but the order don't dare use it to its full potential or the enemy will know where it is."

A worrying thought struck Billy. "If the order are so desperate about secrecy, why are you telling me all this? They're going to kill me, aren't they?"

"Not necessarily. You could join the order. I can't convince them to invite Jason and Adam, but if you agree to become part of the Order of Orasella, you'll be under the protection of the gem. You'll be safe. Then maybe we can find some way to save the others."

This was so messed up. Billy had to choose between dying and signing his life to some group he knew next to nothing about.

"They're not evil," Tommy said, "They do some bad things, but only because they know the cost if the enemy ever gets her hands on the gem."

"You've joined them?" It wasn't really a question.

"They need me to keep fighting their enemy. It's the right thing to do. I can still be a Ranger while guarding the sword." That almost convinced Billy that Tommy was in complete control of his mind. Still wanting to be a Ranger was definitely him.

"Even if your life wasn't at risk," Tommy said, "I'd think you should think about it."

Billy looked around the room, as though the answer might be lurking in the shadows. A part of him wanted to seize this chance instantly. It was his only way to survive. But how could he join any organisation that could so callously kill two of his friends? His gaze fell on the gem. It didn't look like something so powerful that the order would do anything to protect it.

"The gem might be able to show you something," Tommy said.

Billy was hesitant. He didn't want to risk brain washing, but it wasn't like the other option was much better. He walked over to the table. The gem gleamed, seeming to give off its own light. Billy saw his face reflected in the surface. Cautiously, not certain what to expect, he reached out a hand.

He was instantly overwhelmed by images and sounds. He could barely separate them. He saw Power Rangers, different, but with Tommy and his other friends still among them. He saw a room filled with people, some of whom he knew, himself one of them; Tommy was speaking to them, calling them to fight in a great battle. He saw a girl, no older than twelve, with a blade resting against Jason's throat. And then he saw something different. He saw this temple, another prisoner who had learned too much. Billy saw what happened to him, what the order did.

Billy took his hand from the gem.

"There may be a way to save Jason and Adam."


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: Sorry for the delay. I've handed in my assessment now so hopefully I'll have a bit more time for writing.

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A Sword Bearer had once spared her lover. Billy had seen it when he'd looked inside the gem. The man had known she was part of something secret and had been determined to find out what. When he'd managed to get inside the temple, she couldn't bring herself to kill him. So she erased his memory.

"That's the precedent we need," Billy said, "Surely you can use that to convince these people to spare Adam and Jason."

"I'll try." Tommy went to the door and asked to speak to Garin. One of the men waiting there nodded and hurried away. Garin came almost immediately, presumably he'd been waiting to just such a summons. Tommy related what Billy had seen.

"If the Order has the ability to erase Jason and Adam's memories," Tommy said, "there isn't the slightest risk to them or us from the enemy. For the sake of the planet as well as my friends, please do this."

"The Sword Bearer has a duty to protect the secret," Garin said. There was maybe a slight hesitation in his voice, which Tommy clung to with all the hope he could muster.

"But the secret will be protected. Surely the gem wouldn't have shown this to Billy if it didn't think this was a reasonable course of action."

"We can't know what the gem thinks, or even if it does think."

"Please, Garin, they're my friends. If I'm expected to be Sword Bearer, don't I have some right in deciding what happens to them?"

Garin didn't reply at once. Tommy felt as though time was slowing down, holding him suspended in this perpetual uncertainty. The lives of his friends, people who had gone through hell to save him in the past, were hanging in the balance. Tommy had never felt so helpless, waiting for the word of the one man who could decide their fate.

"I will talk to the others," Garin said, "but I don't promise anything."

He left the room. Tommy sagged, almost collapsed. Tension he didn't know had been inside him slipped out. There was a chance. There was hope.

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Jason didn't have a watch. He wasn't sure if he was glad of that or not, because it meant he could imagine that he was only imagining how much time had passed. It seemed like hours since Billy had been taken away. No one else had come to cell or told them what was going on.

He hoped Billy was alright. He felt that this was his fault. Whenever he was in charge of the Rangers, he always seemed to let someone down.

He just wished he understood. He'd given these people everything they'd asked for and it still wasn't enough. Adam had stopped trying to say things to encourage him, telling him things would be OK. They'd both known he was lying. Neither of them could see a way out of here that would leave their friends alive.

After a brief eternity, the door to the cell opened. Standing there was the last person Jason had expected to see, and the most welcome. Tommy.

Jason grabbed him into an embrace before he could even think about it.

"You're alive."

Tommy gave a weak grin. "Yeah, I'm alive." He stepped into the cell, followed by a ninja holding a tray, on which sat two glasses. Jason wasn't sure he wanted to know what was on them.

The door closed decisively again.

"What's going on?" Adam asked, "Do you know what's happened to Billy?"

"Billy's fine," Tommy replied, "at least for now."

"For now?"

"He'll be OK, I'll make sure of it."

Jason looked between Tommy and the ninja. "What's going on?" he echoed Adam's question.

"Billy and I have managed to convince them to let you go. You drink these," he nodded to the tray, "and you'll forget everything you've seen and heard since you've come here."

"No way."

"You have to," Tommy insisted, "The Order of Orasella is fanatical about secrecy. We've barely got them to believe that you were worth sparing because you're Rangers. This is the only way you'll get out of here alive."

"What about you?" Jason asked. He'd noticed that Tommy's promises of freedom had only applied to him and Adam.

"I'll be fine," Tommy replied. But there was a hesitation and something in the tone of voice that suggested it wasn't quite the truth. Not the whole of the truth anyway. Tommy was holding back something, which meant it had to be bad.

"Please, Jase. Drink it," Tommy held up one of the cups from the tray. "Trust me."

That was the worst thing Tommy could have said. Anything else, Jason could have argued against or set aside, found some reasoning against. But he did trust Tommy. And that meant he had to listen.

"Damn you, bro," Jason muttered. And he reached out for the cup.

Remember, he told himself. He drank the liquid, knowing that these people might have been lying and this stuff was poison. Knowing that even if they told the truth it would strip away a piece of himself. Remember. The Order of Orasella, Tommy had said. Jason tried to tattoo it into his memory so that he'd have some reference.

He saw Adam drink, but then the world was fading at the edges, darkness creeping in around his vision.

He sank to the floor, knowing he'd fall anyway if he didn't. Orasella, he thought over and over, Orasella, Orasella.

Oblivion swallowed him.

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The Rangers were waiting. Standing around the power chamber, with the instruments constantly searching for signs of any of the others. Kat felt utterly helpless. And afraid. The others could be dead and they wouldn't even know it.

She tried to fight down the fear that Tommy wouldn't be coming back. They also came home safe. The Power Rangers always won. But she couldn't quiet the little voice in the back of her mind whispering, "Maybe not this time."

Suddenly the alarm blared and Kat jumped out of her dismal thoughts. This would be a truly awful time for King Mondo to send a monster. But maybe it would stop her wallowing in fear and misery.

"The instruments have detected Jason and Adam," Alpha announced. The robot brought up an image on the screen. "Aye aye aye aye aye," Alpha wailed. Kat could see why. The two teenagers were lying completely motionless on the grass in the park, so it was impossible to tell from the screen if they were alive or dead.

No one had to give the order. They all teleported to their friends. Kat rushed to Jason's side, feeling for a pulse.

"He's alive," she said, relief so overwhelming that she momentarily forgot to worry about Tommy.

"So's Adam," Rocky said, "Let's get them back to the power chamber. Alpha, prepare to teleport," he said into the communicator.

"Teleporting now."

The park dissolved, replaced by the lights and electronics of the power chamber. Alpha had somehow produced beds with medical scanners and Rocky lifted Jason and Adam in turn onto them.

"Aye aye aye," Alpha said, "their brainwaves are being altered."

"Altered? How?" Kat asked. She was already remembering being under Rita's spell, her mind changed so that she hardly knew herself. Was that what was happening to Jason and Adam? And Tommy?

"I won't be able to tell until they wake up," Alpha said.

"Can you stop it?" that was Tanya. She looked almost as worried as Kat felt.

"I'm trying." Alpha moved around the beds, doing things to the scanners. Kat wished she knew what, so she might be able to do something useful. Alpha's clumsy digits pressed at buttons. "Aye aye aye," he declared, "I wish Billy was here."

Whatever Alpha was doing had some effect. Jason's eyes blinked open briefly.

"Jason?" Kat said, "Jason, can you hear me?"

"Orasella," Jason breathed. Then his eyes closed and he was out cold again.

"Orasella?" Kat repeated, "What does that mean?" But the others just looked blank.


	8. Chapter 8

He was going to be tested, Garin had told him, to see that he was worthy to be a part of the Order of Orasella. Apparently most new members went through tests of honour and courage that could be taken as passed in his case, since he used to be a Ranger. He just had to pass the test of strength.

Tommy had tried to sound encouraging, but Billy knew he had as little idea about this test as he did. Some sort of combat was all they would tell them. Billy assumed it would be to the death, since no one could be sent home if they failed. He told himself that this was nothing; he'd fought for his life as a Ranger so many times. But he'd had cosmic power helping him then, and his friends fighting by his side.

At least Jason and Adam would be OK. Tommy had gone to see they were released while Billy prepared himself for the fight. Garin had taken him to a small, empty room and given him a change of clothes, the same black as all the people here wore. Billy lifted the shirt, feeling certain that if he put it on it would be the final farewell to his Ranger days. No more colour-coded clothing. Just the black of the ninja, of the order.

He put on the shirt and trousers. He hesitated only briefly, then he put on the mask.

It felt weird. Cloth over his face, warm, the area over his mouth quickly getting slightly damp from the moisture in his breath. It would be distracting in a fight.

He wondered what he was supposed to do now. He tried to door but wasn't too surprised to find it locked. There was nothing inside the room but the pile of his discarded clothes. It didn't even have the bench that the cells had.

It wasn't long before Garin returned. At least, Billy assumed it was Garin. He had his mask back on and only the sash identified him.

He led Billy from the tiny room, along a few of the identical corridors and into a huge hall. The floor was circular, surrounded by tiers of seats, every one of them filled. Somehow, that made this harder. Billy had fought plenty of battles, but he hadn't had an audience for them. He looked round for Tommy in the crowd, but couldn't see him. Not that he'd be able to tell if Tommy had also been offered a change of clothes, since the figures in the audience were all masked. Overhead, a glass dome offered a view of stars. Even the fear of impending death couldn't stop Billy's curiosity and he wondered how the stars were visible through the windows when there was plenty of light inside.

Billy stood in the centre of the room, while Garin moved off to one side. One of four doors opened and a man walked in. He was clothed as all the others were but Billy could tell that there was plenty of muscle beneath the fabric.

"Billy," Garin said, "you have asked to join the Order of Orasella. Before we can welcome you into our midst, you must face the challenge of combat. You see your opponent. Do you accept?"

Billy found his throat was dry and he barely managed to answer, "Yes." There wasn't really any other answer, since they'd kill him if he refused.

"Then begin."

Billy's opponent bowed and he did likewise. Then the fight began.

It was over humiliatingly quickly. Billy managed to block a few blows, but failed to get a single attack in. A minute or so into the fight, Billy found himself on his back, his opponent pinning him to the arena floor. Billy hoped Tommy wasn't watching, since he'd just wasted any karate training he'd been given.

"Enough," Garin said, "the fight is won."

The opponent stood and offered a hand to Billy to help him to his feet. Politeness before the execution? Billy wondered if they'd let him say goodbye to Tommy.

"Your skill needs much improvement," Garin said, which gained a small chuckle from the audience, "but you fought with honour and courage." There was a flare of hope somewhere within Billy. "All that remains is to see if the Gem of Orasella will accept you under its protection."

A gong sounded, though Billy couldn't see the source. One of the doors opened and four kids walked in, holding an ornate tray on which sat the gem. A fifth walked behind them, holding a golden sceptre across his chest and looking very proud of himself. Billy would have guessed their ages were barely creeping into double figures. Unlike everyone else, they weren't in the black ninja outfits. Two of those holding the tray were girls, in black shirts and golden skirts. The boys wore black trousers, and long sleeved t-shirts that had a stylised gem design on in gold. Billy supposed not everyone here was a warrior.

"Place your right hand on the gem," Garin told him. Billy did so. It was warm. Then the warmth flowed from his hand up his arm, spreading quickly through the rest of his body until every nerve tingled with life. He heard a voice speaking, then realised it was his own, an echo of a voice long since dead.

"I accept this one as a child of my own, to protect and guard from the evil that would claim him. Should she come for him, I will stand between them. She shall not have him."

Billy stopped speaking. He had no compulsion to say anything else, but the feeling of warmth hadn't left him. The boy with the sceptre stepped around the others and stood in front of Billy. He held out the sceptre so that the top touched Billy above the heart.

"As children of Orasella, we welcome you," the boy said, "You are a part of our family, from now until the day of your death." Here the boy paused, looking embarrassed as he forgot his lines, continuing moments later with a flushed and flustered face. "You are one of us. Protected by Orasella and by ourselves. From this moment on, you are of the Order of Orasella, bound by our laws, defended by our power and an integral part of our strength."

Now all five children spoke, "We stand between the innocent and their greatest enemy. We welcome you to our battle."

There was a cheer from the audience and Garin stepped forwards, offering a muttered "well done" to the boy with the sceptre, who just looked even more embarrassed.

Billy just stood there, finally taking his hand from the stone now that events seemed to be over. He couldn't quite wrap his head around the fact he was alive and was going to stay that way.

He just had to hope Tommy was right about the order.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jason opened his eyes and recognised the ceiling of the power chamber. Had Billy's device failed? He tried to think back to remember what had happened, but there was nothing after Billy had activated that thing.

"Jason?" Kat's voice. Jason blinked and tried to sit up. He was strapped down.

"What's going on?" he asked, tugging at the straps which trapped him on the bed. He turned his head to look around the room. Adam was in a similar position, but unconscious or asleep. Kat, Rocky and Tanya came to stand by Jason. But there was no sign of Billy.

"Jason," came Zordon's voice, "can you tell us what happened to you?"

"Billy had built something to take us to Tommy."

"But what happened when you got there?" Kat asked.

Jason stared at her for a moment, "I don't remember getting there." The others looked at each other, worry written all over their faces. Jason tried not to panic, but his mind was running through possibilities, each more terrifying than the last. He was afraid that he'd been brainwashed or something to try and hurt his friends. It wasn't like it hadn't happened before. He was almost too scared to ask why he was held prisoner. But he asked anyway.

"We detected some alterations being made to your brain waves," Alpha explained.

"We thought you might wake up…" Kat hesitated, "not you."

"I still feel like me," he said, "I just don't remember what happened."

"It is possible that that was the purpose of the alteration," said Zordon.

Kat hesitated, then started to undo the straps. Rocky and Tanya instantly helped her and soon Jason was sitting up. Still no urge to attack his friends or do anything evil. He looked round the power chamber, realising that someone was missing. Someone who was the constant in this place.

"Where's Billy?" he asked.

The others looked away, their silence as loud as any answer. Something terrible had happened to Billy, and Jason didn't even know what. He'd failed. He'd let Billy down. He'd let Tommy down. And for all he knew, they were both gone forever.

The blaring of the alarm interrupted his guilt trip.

"What's happening?" Rocky asked.

"Two children are being attacked," Zordon answered, as the screen showed the images of a couple of kids fending off cogs. A boy and a girl, who looked about twelve years old. There was no obvious reason for the attack, but Jason wouldn't put it past King Mondo to attack kids out of pure malice.

Jason knew what he had to do. No matter how bad things were, innocent civilians came first. If there was a way to save Billy and Tommy, they'd find it. Right now, they had work to do.

"It's Morphing Time!" he said.

"Zeo Ranger One, Pink!"

"Zeo Ranger Two, Yellow!"

"Zeo Ranger Three, Blue!"

"Gold Ranger Power!"

They morphed the location of the attack, a residential area only a few streets away from Jason's house. The kids were in the middle of a mess of cogs, but they appeared to be holding their own. Both of them had a knife in one hand and they were fighting off the robots with surprising skill. Jason wasn't going to hesitate about joining in the fight to help them.

Even short two Rangers, the fight was over quickly, the robots shorting out and vanishing.

"You'll be alright now," Jason told the kids, preparing to teleport back to the power chamber. He needed to see if Adam was awake. Maybe he remembered something.

"Jason, wait," the girl said. Jason paused, astonished. He just stood there a moment before he could gather his wits enough to say, "I think you've made a mistake."

"No we haven't," the boy said, "Jason Scott."

The girl looked around, found a bag that she must have dropped in the fight.

"How do you know who I am?" Jason asked.

"We're from the future," the girl said, "I'm Trina, this is my brother Will."

"We've got a message for you," Will added.

"What message?"

The girl fished a tape out of the bag and held it towards Jason.

"The future of the universe depends on you watching this," she said.

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Author's Note: Finally managed to get the twins meeting Jason. But you'll have to wait to find out who the twins are and what's on the tape.


	9. Chapter 9

Jason found a tape player that plugged into the main display screen of the power chamber. He'd always assumed Billy was working when he was here, but maybe not. He shoved the tape in and pressed play. For a moment he thought Trina had made a mistake and given him a family video.

The screen showed a dining room, a couple of tables pushed together and set for a meal. There was a Christmas tree in the corner of the room. Jason recognised some of the figures sitting down for a meal. He saw himself, a little older and a little fatter. He saw Tommy, short hair making him look so different that Jason wasn't certain at first. There was David, looking more like Tommy than Tommy did. There was a man Jason didn't recognise, and a teenaged boy sitting beside him. The twins sat themselves down and then a woman, also unfamiliar. Now there was only one seat left. Kat came into view of the camera, carrying a plate of food.

"You need any help?" the teenager asked.

"It's OK, Trent, I've got it," Kat replied. She deposited the plate and then walked back out of the view of the camera again.

Jason turned to Trina and asked, "So, what did Santa buy you?"

"Please," the girl said, "I stopped believing in Santa when I was five." There was a chuckle from around the table. Then the scene was interrupted by Billy appearing. He didn't teleport. One second there was no one there, then he was standing next to the table, causing all the diners to jump. His expression was frantic.

"It's her," he told Tommy, "she's coming." Tommy was on his feet, fear written all over his face. All colour drained from Jason's face and he looked terrified.

"What's going on?" the unfamiliar man asked, but Tommy paid no attention.

"Billy, get the kids out of here," Tommy ordered.

"No."

"We're no going anywhere." The twins protested.

Then there was an explosion. The whole room shook, the camera toppled to the floor, giving a few of things and people falling. The angle now showed the door to the kitchen, burning and crumbling. There was a scream from inside. The house was collapsing around them. Tommy ran towards the kitchen, screaming "Kat," but Jason and David held him, pulled him back.

Billy put an arm round each of the twins, both of whom were screaming and crying, and the three of them vanished.

Then there was just the view of people scrambling to escape the chaos. They were helping each other stumble to safety, but Jason and David practically had to drag the distraught Tommy away.

The screen faded. When images reappeared, it was a clip of a news programme. The woman was talking about the recent attacks, giving an emergency phone number to call where they had lists of the confirmed dead and those that were injured. They were calling for anyone with experience in medicine or the emergency services to help with the rescue efforts.

The view changed from the broadcasting studio to what looked almost like a war zone. There were rows of bodies, doctors and rescue workers moving between them. The newscaster was still talking, estimating the number of dead world wide to be somewhere above one million.

"Hold on a moment," Rocky took the remote and paused the tape. He rewound a few frames and they saw what it was he'd spotted. Adam. One of the bodies lying dead in the wake of the attack was Adam.

Jason looked across the power chamber to where Adam was still unconscious. At least that meant he'd get through this intact. He tried to comfort himself that the Christmas scene meant that Tommy and Billy would be alright, but that just made him feel guilty about being glad of seeing Kat die.

"They came to change the future," Jason said, "So let's see what else they want to show us." He pressed play.

The next minute or so comprised of clips from various news reports, different station logos in the corner of the screen. They were shots of cities, or what was left of them. Most were ruins, being picked over by men in uniform in the frail hope of survivors. The subtitles and the reporters named the cities: Washington, Moscow, London, Paris, Berlin, and so many others. It seemed that every capital city in the world had been reduced to rubble.

Then came a shot labelled Angel Grove.

Tanya gave a gasp of dismay. Jason gaped in horror. It was a crater. While the other places had shown clear signs of civilisation, there wasn't even wreckage where Angel Grove had once stood. The whole place had been flattened for miles, every trace of life wiped out.

This was what the future held for them.

Jason was relieved that there were no more shots of dead cities. What followed was little better. The screen now showed a room, fairly large but crammed with people. Some of those gathered, Jason recognised. He saw Trini in the crowd and a few bulging, purple heads of Aquitions. Even Trey was standing there; just one of him. The room, what was visible of it amongst the people, was built of orange stone, with what looked like dinosaur fossils in the walls. At one end was a huge computer and screen on a slightly raised platform. It was onto this platform that three people walked. Jason, Tommy and Billy.

There was a moment's silence. All those gathered turned to the three. Waiting.

"Welcome, all of you," Tommy said, "I wish I didn't have to call you together like this, but each of you was chosen to become a Power Ranger because of the courage and strength you possess, and the goodness to use those qualities for the defence of others.

"The Earth stands at the brink of destruction and if she falls, so will all that is good and right in the universe. We have just one chance. We fight our enemy with every force we can muster, every weapon at our disposal, every ounce of strength in our bodies.

"I would like to tell you that we'll win. I wish I could promise you victory. I would love to say to you that we win go up against our enemy and we will defeat her. But all I can promise you is that if we can't stop her, there's no power in the universe that could have done.

"This is a battle the Rangers should never have had to fight. We should never have had to face this threat. I have no right to ask you to fight her. But here I am, asking you. One Ranger to another, I am asking you to join and face her down, for the defence of this planet and this galaxy. Will you join me?"

A chorus of cheers met the speech.

The shot cut out, replaced by Tommy sitting, staring at the camera. He was looking completely depressed and tired, shadows under his eyes, worry written over every feature.

"Jason," he said, "if you're watching this tape, then I'm probably dead. We're about to go into battle against a powerful enemy. I've called in everyone who's ever been a Ranger. We're coordinating with military forces around the world. We've asked for help from all our allies on other planets. We've come up with strategies by the hundred, we've got the most brilliant minds working on weapons." He sighed, "But I still don't see how we can win."

Tommy looked away briefly. It wasn't the short hair and extra years that made him different; it was the sadness, the forlorn lost look. The strong, indestructible Tommy had given up hope.

"Of those Rangers you know," Tommy went on, staring at the camera again, "Kimberly's dead; Rocky's dead; Adam's dead; Zack's dead; Kat's dead." His voice choked slightly on that last one. "There are plenty others who you haven't met yet who're also gone, and I fully expect that this time tomorrow every one of us will have joined them.

"Fortunately, we have a plan B. You." Tommy looked passed the camera and then two figures walked into view. The twins went and stood on either side of him, each putting a hand into one of Tommy's.

"These are the twins," Tommy said, "Trina and Will. Billy and some of the other scientists have managed to build a device that will create a time portal. I've instructed the twins that, if it looks like we're going to lose the battle, they should use the portal to take this tape to you. They know what has to be done to change history. Listen to them, Jase. I trust them absolutely and I know they'll do whatever they can to make sure things don't come to this. Do what they tell you."

Another voice spoke from off screen and Jason recognised it as his own. "Tommy, it's time to go."

"OK," Tommy spoke to the unseen figure, then he looked back to the camera. "Good luck, Jase. And goodbye."

He leaned forward, reaching for the camera. Then the screen went blank.

Jason was left standing at the empty blackness where his friend had just been, preparing to go to his. He tried to convince himself that it hadn't happened, that Tommy must still be alive and safe somewhere. But he'd just seen so much destruction.

He had to find those kids.

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Trina was sitting on the grass under a tree. She'd pulled a whet stone from her bag and was running it along the blade of her knife. Will was pacing frantically. Occasionally, he'd sit beside her, but then he'd be on his feet again in a moment and walking again.

"It'll take him a while to watch the tape," Trina said, not looking at him.

"Not this long."

Trina put a finger on the edge of the knife. "Damn robots. It's going to take me forever to get this properly sharp again."

"I wish a few more of those things would show up, I could do with something to thump."

"You'd think you'd be glad of a break from fighting," Trina said.

"I just hate waiting. And at least those cog things are easier than tyrannodrones."

Maybe a minute later, Trina realised Will had finally stood still. She looked up and saw Jason walking towards them. She stood, sheathing the knife underneath the back of her shirt. There was a silence, Jason looking at them both, cataloguing them, trying to work out who they were.

"Are you Power Rangers?" Jason asked.

"No," Trina said, "but we know the Rangers in our time."

"I watched the tape. Apparently you'll tell me how to change the future."

Trina and Will glanced at each other. It was Trina who spoke again. "If the time portal was accurate, Tommy will have recently been by a group of ninjas."

Jason nodded, he looked hopeful at the mention. "Do you know something about it? Where is he?"

"Forget it," Will said. Jason blinked in surprise. Trina was left to try and carry on the explanation.

"Tommy will be fine," Trina said, "but according to our timeline, you will try and work out who took him and you'll manage it. You'll uncover a secret you shouldn't. Just ignore the ninjas, carry on as though nothing had happened and everything'll be fine."

Jason looked dubious. "I can't believe that would change the future."

"We've spent the last few weeks in a war with an enemy so powerful she can never be defeated. The only way to stop her destroying the universe is to not draw her into battle. You must have heard of Pandora's box. If you give in to your curiosity, you'll bring about the end of everything good."

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Author's note: It makes no difference to the plot, but the unnamed guests at the Christmas dinner were Anton and Hayley.


	10. Chapter 10

Garin gave Tommy and Billy a tour of the temple. It seemed more like a whole city condensed into a single building. There were bedrooms; it seemed most of the order lived here. There were training rooms by the dozen. There were classrooms for the children. There were gardens, plants growing by lamplight under a sky of stars, protected, according to Garin, by a force shield. There was a control room which powered the shields that defended the temple from outside observers. There were labs filled with technology that almost had Billy drooling.

He had no idea where the temple was, but by now he was fairly certain it wasn't on Earth. It might even be in another dimension. Garin wasn't keen to disclose this fact yet.

Seeing some of the scientists, Billy felt better about his future here. Everyone had to be able to fight, but there were plenty of people whose purpose with the order wasn't violence.

Garin also revealed how they moved. Transmatting, he called it. It seemed to work on a similar principle to teleportation, but using more dimensions than the usual three. Apparently, everyone the stone accepted had the ability given to them. They would be able to move to and from the temple at will, though anything else would take a lot of practice.

Garin told Billy that when he was ready, there would be a place for him to live available in the temple. Until then, he should come daily if he could to train and learn more about his new duties. But it was time for him to go home now.

"What are we going to tell the others?" Billy asked.

"That we disguised ourselves and managed to reach an exit," Tommy suggested.

"Do you think they'll believe that?"

"They'll be a lot more likely to accept it without explanation than if we say we were set free. We can just explain away the lack of any more attacks by saying they must have got what they were after."

"And the dragon dagger?"

Tommy had been provided with a sheath for it that would apparently change it's shape if the sword did. When they left the temple, it would look to everyone that Tommy had the dragon dagger strapped to his waste.

"We can say that they tapped into some residual energy in the power coin and the dagger materialised."

Billy was certain the others wouldn't believe them, but he didn't have any better suggestions.

"I guess we try to transmat," Tommy said. Billy was still wondering how he was supposed to do that when the temple walls were replaced by those of the power chamber.

"Whoa!" Those in the power chamber jumped in surprise, tensing for a fight before they realised who it was. Kat ran over and hugged Tommy the instant she recognised him.

Tommy hugged her back, but he felt guilty as he did so. When he'd looked inside the gem, he'd heard a voice declaring her love for him. It had been the future. He recognised the voice, but it wasn't Kat's. It was Kimberly's. And now he was holding Kat, despite knowing that he'd leave her in a heartbeat if he could be with Kim again.

"Are you alright?" Kat asked.

Tommy nodded. He looked around the power chamber, seeing Jason missing, but Adam lying still. He hurried over, not needing to act the part of concerned friend. The fear had risen up inside him at the sight, a part of him saying that maybe he'd been tricked. But Adam was alive.

"He and Jason got sent back," Rocky said, "Jason woke up a little while ago. He's fine but he doesn't remember what happened."

"Do you remember?" Kat asked.

Tommy nodded. He told the agreed story, waiting for the moment his friends would say it didn't make sense and demanded the truth. But they just listened, accepted that they were back. The ninjas didn't want to be enemies, so they were sent home. Tommy tried to squash the feelings of guilt with the certainty that this was a necessary lie.

"Where's Jason?" Billy asked, as soon as Tommy had finished the tale and before anyone could question him on the slightly hazy details.

They told him. Tommy just stood there, listening in disbelief to the story of kids from the future. Tanya pressed play on the remote and Tommy and Billy got to see the tape. He watched himself on the screen and saw more than the others probably had. He noticed how Billy arrived in the dining room and could recognise it as transmatting. He heard the enemy referred to as 'her', the name never spoken. It wasn't a coincidence that the kids had arrived now.

"I think I need to talk to them," Tommy said.

"I suspected that you would," Zordon told him, "however you should not expect them to reveal too much of the future. Small knowledge can produce huge changes. You should trust that your future self knew what he was doing in sending them to Jason."

Tommy supposed there was truth in that, but it didn't make sense to him. If the enemy that was destroying the Rangers was who he suspected it to be, then Jason wouldn't know anything about her or be able to stop her. Why would he send the twins to Jase, and not himself? He supposed he'd have to ask them.

"Is it alright to teleport, do you think?" Tommy asked. The kids clearly knew about the Rangers, but there was just a question of how much.

"I believe it will be safe."

"Do you want us to come with you?" Kat asked.

"No, I'll be fine now." He gave her hand a small squeeze. Somehow that felt like more of a lie than all the others he'd told today. But, in the video, it looked like he and Kat might have been together. Maybe one day he would be able to get over Kim.

He reached for his teleporter and had it lock onto the signal from Jason's. The room dissolved in red light and, useful though transmatting was, he was grateful for the familiarity. Then he realised how bizarre it was that travelling as a beam of light was familiar.

He arrived at a patch of grass and a few trees, close to both his house and Jason's. Jason was sitting on the ground, talking to the kids. He looked round at Tommy's arrival, on his feet in a moment. He grabbed Tommy's hand in a firm shake, as though he wasn't certain this was more than his imagination.

"You're OK," he said.

"I'm glad to hear it," Tommy grinned.

"And Billy?"

"He's fine. He's back at the power chamber." Tommy looked to the kids, seeing something familiar in their faces. "So you're our messengers from the future?"

"That's right," the girl said, the boy just nodding. "I'm Trina, this is Will."

"So you're here to change history?"

"We can't tell you much," Trina said, "You thought," she hesitated, "you will think that it's a bad idea if we reveal too much of what happens, since hopefully most of the next twelve years will stay the same."

"If you don't want to change things for more than a decade, why did you come back to now?"

"The change has to be now," Trina told him, "The bad stuff doesn't happen for years, but the thing that causes it happens now."

Tommy hesitated, tried to think of a way to phrase the question without giving too much away. He had no idea what the twins knew, and had to be careful he didn't say something he shouldn't in front of Jason. "Is this something to do with the ninjas?"

Trina looked at her brother. A look passed between them, a silence that held a whole conversation. "Their secret has to be kept," she told Tommy, "at all costs."

He nodded. And doing so added another brick to the wall of lies between him and his friends.

"Look," he said, "why don't we go somewhere more comfortable to talk. My house is only just round the corner."

Trina got as far as "I don't know if we" before her brother cut her off with a "Yes." Tommy realised that was the first time he'd heard Will speaking.

"Is there a reason your sister does all the talking?" he asked as they headed down the road.

It was Trina who answered. "Dad used to joke that we only had one voice between us, and it's all mine."

"Just 'cause no one can get a word in edgewise while you're around," Will responded, adding a muttered, "Loudmouth."

"Mute."

"I wish I did have a mute button for you."

There was something in the tone and the quick responses that suggested this scene had been played out time and time before. Tommy almost felt jealous as he saw them bickering. He had a brother, but barely knew him. Watching the twins, he wished he could be that close with David, the only family he really had.

It didn't take long at all to reach his house. As he opened the door, a voice called from upstairs. His mum, well, adopted mum. She said there was a letter for him, but he'd already seen it propped up on the banisters where he couldn't miss it. He didn't need to look at the sender's address on the back to know who it was from. He recognised the handwriting.

A part of him wanted to just throw the thing away unopened. He didn't want to open himself up to that much pain again.

"Aren't you going to open it?" Trina asked. Tommy realised he'd been staring at the envelope for more than a minute. Jason put a hand on his shoulder, offering to read it for him. That was even more of a mistake.

He forced himself to open the envelope and pull out the single sheet of paper.

The letter was short.

Very short.

Kim apologised for how little she'd said in her last letter, told him that there were a lot of things she needed to tell him and asked him to come to Florida.

He scrunched the paper up in his fist. Kim ripped his heart out with barely a word of explanation and now she expected him to just fly to Florida and see her. It was ridiculous and of course he wasn't going. He didn't have the money for a plane ticket. He didn't have the time. He wasn't going to drop everything he was doing because of someone who didn't even have the decency to dump him face to face. A phone call would have been better! There was no way he was going to Florida.

Even if it meant he could get the answers he'd been wanting for months.

He sank down to sit on the stairs. Maybe it would be a good idea. If he saw her and talked to her, maybe he'd realise they'd both changed and he'd stop deluding himself that he was in love with her. Maybe she'd give her reasons and they'd all make sense and he'd be happy again. Maybe…

Maybe it would just break his heart all over again.

"You should go to Florida," Will said. Trina shoved an elbow in his ribs and hissed at him to shut up. But Tommy was looking at him, wondering what the boy knew about the contents of this letter.

"Because me going to Florida will really affect the future of the world," Tommy said, sarcasm dripping from his tone. He remembered when the thought of Kim would make him smile no matter how he was feeling. Now, the mere mention of her had him snarling at anyone who happened to be standing to close.

"It might not change the world, but it'll help you," Will said. There was a trace of anger in his tone, but it might have been masking something else.

Tommy barely noticed Jason taking the letter from his fingers and reading it. He was too busy glaring at this little kid who was acting like some omniscient oracle. This little upstart was too young to know about love.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Tommy demanded, "I don't even know you and you think you can tell me how to live my life?"

"You might not know me, but I know you. If you don't go to Florida now you'll spend the rest of your life regretting it!" Will was almost shouting, but his eyes were furiously blinking back tears.

"You still love Kim." Jason's voice was calm despite the chaos. The words shook Tommy out of his angry state somewhat. There was no question in them. Just a statement of fact.

"Yeah," Tommy said, "I love her."

"Then go to Florida, bro, find out what she has to say. Get Zordon to teleport you there. You need this."

Tommy looked round at each of the others. At Will, given up trying to hide the fact he was crying. At Trina, who had a comforting arm around her brother's shoulder. At Jason, the friend who knew him better than he knew himself sometimes.

They were right.

Tommy needed answers.

He reached for his wrist and teleported out.

Back in Tommy's hallway, Trina pulled her brother into a hug and let her own tears begin to fall.

"Who are you?" Jason asked. Will seemed incapable of any further speech for the moment. Trina sniffled for a moment, then looked Jason in the eye. The light coming in at the right angle through the glass in the door and the pink, flowery shirt she was wearing made unmistakable the resemblance to Kim.

"Catrina Olivia Hart."

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Author's note: OK, so how many people guessed who the twins were?


	11. Chapter 11

Tommy had Alpha teleport him to the apartment with the address on the back on the envelope. It was dingy, the paper peeling a little in the corridors, the light just down the hall from Kim's door kept flickering on and off. Tommy wondered why Kim would live in a place like this, but supposed she didn't have much time to earn money outside of her training, and her mum was all the way in France.

Tommy stood in front of Kim's door for well over a minute before he worked up the courage to knock. He was terrified of what she might have to tell him, terrified of how he'd feel when he saw her face.

When the door opened a little and Kim looked out, he saw a pale, tired face. Shadows were under her eyes and surprise on her features.

"I didn't expect you here so soon," she said.

"I didn't expect to come," he answered. She opened the door wider and allowed him in. Then Tommy saw the reason for her tiredness. A heavily swollen stomach was undeniable evidence of pregnancy.

"Wh.." he managed, after several long seconds of staring. The shock finally wore off enough for him to form a coherent thought. "How?" he asked.

Kim didn't look at him. She walked into the apartment, taking a seat in a shabby armchair. Tommy followed her into a little lounge area, but didn't take the other chair. He waited for her to speak. Kim was staring at the carpet, she sighed, drew a deep breath and then hesitated. Tommy watched her and wondered how long she'd been preparing what she was about to say.

"It was about a month or so after I moved here," Kim said, "I went out with a couple of the girls from the training centre. I guess I wasn't watching my drink properly because it must have been spiked. Two weeks later I found out I was pregnant." Her voice was almost steady, but there were tears in her eyes. Tommy felt almost physically sick at the thought of what must have been done to her. Such a violation and she couldn't even remember it.

A part of him wanted nothing more than to hurry over to her and hug her until nothing else in the world mattered. But he was rooted to the spot. The anger he'd felt towards her for months was buried in pity at seeing her like this, but the reasons for it still remained. He needed to hear the rest and she needed to say it.

"I didn't tell anyone," she went on, "I felt like something vile and disgusting had been put inside me and if I let anyone know, they'd see it and think I was disgusting too." Tommy started to protest, but Kim cut him off. "I know it was stupid, but I still felt it. So when my mum and my friends found out I was pregnant, I let them think it was yours."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Tommy asked. He saw her now, decades older than she had been when she'd left Angel Grove, just over a year earlier. She looked a tired, frightened wreck. Nothing like the bright, beautiful girl he'd loved.

"Because I was afraid you'd hate me for being with someone else. Because I was afraid that you wouldn't want me if you knew I was pregnant with some sicko's kid. And because I was scared that you might still want me and you'd come and help me through this. I had to give up my dreams to have this kid and I couldn't ask you to give up yours for something that wasn't even your responsibility."

"You wouldn't have had to ask, Kim."

"I know. And that's why I didn't want to tell you. When I made up my mind to keep the kid, I decided that I'd raise it myself. I wouldn't get you involved. You'd never even have to know."

"So why did you change your mind?"

There was a silence. Kim had her eyes closed, her head turned away from Tommy. Somehow, it seemed that this next confession was harder than all the secrets that had been revealed so far.

"I have cancer," Kim said. "Cervical cancer. It's usually treated by an operation, but if I went through with the surgery, it would end the pregnancy. I'd spent weeks and weeks trying to decide whether to have the kid aborted or not and I'd made my mind up to have the baby. And then a doctor came to me and told me that to be treated, I'd lose my child." Tommy could see where this was going. Her rounded belly left no doubt which choice she'd made. He began desperately praying that her tale wasn't going to end in the way it was bound to.

"I decided to wait and see the pregnancy through and have the treatment as soon as the kid was born. Lots of women do it and survive and have perfectly healthy babies." But her tone was still dismal. That last sentence wasn't the offer of hope it should have been.

"The cancer grew faster than the doctor was expecting," Kim said, "When the kids are born, I can have the operation, but my chances aren't good. I don't expect to see my babies reach their first birthday."

She was crying freely now, having said all she needed to say. She didn't have to hold herself together and let herself dissolve into tears. Tommy hurried over to her, wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, as though his presence could ease her suffering. They stayed that way a while. Tommy thought over everything she'd said. There wasn't the slightest trace of anger now. She'd suffered alone because she'd cared too much to involve him.

He knew he would have come to her in a heartbeat if she'd asked, but he could be here for her now despite everything.

Then his brain finally realised what had been said in her last few sentences. He pulled away from the hug, crouching in front of her chair to look her in the face.

"Babies?" he asked.

Kim nodded, "Twins. A girl and a boy. I'd already picked out names, before I knew about the cancer. I'd decided what I'd call a girl, what I'd call a boy. Now I get to use both names." She gave a slight smile that had little real happiness in it. "Catrina Olivia and William Thomas." Tommy returned the smile. A part of him would have been involved in the kids' lives even if Kim hadn't told him.

There must have been too much going on for him to think about it all clearly, because again it took him several seconds before he made the connection.

"Trina and Will," he muttered.

"They haven't even been born and you're already giving them nicknames," Kim grinned weakly. Tommy managed a half-hearted laugh. He thought about the twins, and realised he'd been a fool not to see the resemblance. He wondered if he ought to tell Kim about the visitors from the future. If she was worried about not seeing her children grow up, it might do her good to see them. But the twins had said nothing about this when they'd told him to come here.

"Kim, I promise you, no matter what happens, I will look after your children."

"You don't have to," Kim said.

"I know." He reached out and brushed her face with his hand. "But I love you and so I know I will love your kids because they're a part of you. They may not be my kids, but they will be. No one needs to know any different."

Kim smiled again and this time she meant it. She leaned forward and kissed him. Just briefly. And then they hugged again. Her mouth was by his ear and she whispered, "I love you, Tommy. I never stopped loving you."

Tommy recognised the words. He'd heard them when he'd looked inside the gem. For a brief time he'd dared to hope that it meant a future for himself and Kim. Now he knew otherwise. This moment together was all he could hope to have. Tears began to fall and he didn't dry to stop them. Kim had seen him before now, lost to despair when he was losing the one thing that gave him focus. He could let her see his pain now, at the thought of losing her.

She had kept him strong when he lost his green powers. She had always been there, something worth fighting for no matter how bad things got. Now, he didn't know how much time they had together, but it wouldn't be long. Like feeling his powers drain away battle by battle, he was seeing his heart ripped out from his chest and slowly dying, letting him see as the most important piece of his life faded.

Tommy stayed for several hours. They talked about the children, what Kim's hopes for them were. They talked about each other, how much it had hurt to be apart. They talked about the things they'd been doing. But most of the time, they sat in silence. Tommy's hand was almost always on Kim somewhere, touching her shoulder, holding her hand, just confirming that she was near and close. And letting her know she wasn't alone anymore.

At last, he said goodbye and hugged her again. He didn't want to leave, not after so much time apart. But they'd talked about it and she'd decided to go back to Angel Grove. She would stay with Tommy until the babies were born, have the operation there and maybe, just maybe, she'd be ok. He would go home now and she would sort out things with the landlord and talk to her doctor about transferring records. Then she would follow him.

He kissed her one more time, crying again, but not knowing how to stop it. He reached for his wrist and the teleporter, and then the room vanished.

He materialised in the power chamber, slightly surprised to see the twins there. The rest of the Rangers were gathered there, including a finally awake Adam. They looked at him, studying the expression on his face.

Tommy knew why they were staring. He didn't think he'd ever cried openly in front of them.

"Tommy, what's wrong?" Kat asked. He couldn't answer. He didn't know where to begin.

He stared at the twins. Trina and Will. Kim's face was looking at him out of each of theirs and he must have been blind not to see it before. Did they know they weren't his?

A million fears flooded him. He had more than a decade of parenthood ahead of him before those two would be who they were now. What would he be like as a father? He'd never even done babysitting to get extra money. How could he cope on his own with twins?

Maybe they saw some of his fears, because Will strode across the room and put his arms around Tommy. A moment later, Trina did the same and Tommy hugged them, an arm around each of them, tears flowing freely down his cheeks.

"It'll be ok, Dad," Will said, "You'll be ok."

But Tommy wasn't sure how.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Author's note: I never said they were Tommy's kids. I figured Kim probably would have told him if she was going to have his babies, but I still wanted to have the twins in their story as their children.


	12. Chapter 12

"Am I a good dad?" Tommy asked. He was sitting in the park with the twins. It was the question he'd been wanting to ask since he'd got back from Florida yesterday, but there'd been so much else to talk about with the others. Adam had to be told everything that had happened and the rest of the guys wanted to know if he remembered anything and they all wanted to hear about Kim. Now they'd finally managed a moment to themselves. They were sitting beneath an old tree with a view down a grassy slope to the lake. When he looked at it, Tommy kept seeing the barren wasteland that had been in the tape.

He knew he ought to be asking about the order and whether it was their enemy that the Rangers were fighting in the future. But somehow he was more scared of messing up as a parent than the destruction of the planet.

"You're the best," Will said, "You started teaching us karate practically the minute we could walk. You took us to the park every Saturday and we'd play catch or soccer or basketball. When we were little, you used to tell us bedtime stories about the Power Rangers."

"You did miss a school play once," Trina said with a grin, "but since there was a monster attacking the city at the same time, we forgave you."

"Did you always know I was a Power Ranger?"

"No, but for most of our lives you weren't one," said Trina.

"Yeah, it's only recently you got involved with the Rangers again."

"We shouldn't tell him that. We're not supposed to say too much, remember?"

"Are you allowed to tell me about the enemy?"

"You already know who she is," Trina said. She reached behind her and from underneath the innocent, flowery shirt, she drew a knife. Tommy took it, seeing the engraving of a deer just below the hilt. A hart. As his hand closed around it, he felt the same power that flowed through the fake dragon dagger. He knew that if he held this within the temple, it would look completely different.

He looked at Trina, then at Will sat to the other side of him. There was only one explanation for how Trina would be so open about this.

"You too?" he asked Will. Will produced an identical knife from under his t-shirt.

"How many Sword Bearers are there?" Tommy asked.

"Two weeks ago, our time anyway, there were thirty-seven," Trina said, "the night before we left there were just the three of us. The enemy managed to get into the temple. She destroyed it completely, killed everyone inside."

"How?" Tommy breathed, thinking of the people he'd seen there. Hundreds of them. Including children. "I thought the temple was protected against that."

"She managed to turn one of the order into her agent," Will said. There was a slight strain to his voice. Tommy recognised it as tears he wasn't going to let himself shed.

"I thought that was supposed to be impossible," Tommy said.

"It should have been," Will was staring at the grass as he spoke, but his eyes were clearly seeing into his memories, "but something happened that allowed a seed to get past the gem of Orasella and into the minds of one of the order. It took years, but finally she was able to turn him. And he gave the gem to her."

Tommy wanted to ask who and how. He wanted to ask how he was supposed to stop it happening again. After all, protecting the gem was his task now. He never had the chance. The sound of cracking twigs behind them alerted them to someone's approach. The twins hid their knives with practiced speed and Tommy looked round to see Jason walking towards them.

"Hey, bro," Tommy greeted him, "what's up?"

"Not a lot," Jason answered. But Tommy could tell there was something wrong. Some indefinable thing about Jason's stance was enough for him to know that there was something on Jason's mind.

"What is it?"

"It's…" Jason looked away, shaking his head slightly. Then he looked back. "Have you figured out what to tell Kimberly?" So Jason was just worried about Kim. Hardly surprising, really. Tommy glanced at the twins.

The children Kim was worried about never seeing grow up. She could see them and talk to them. But was it fair? Letting her know all the things she'd miss out on.

"It's your choice," Tommy told the kids.

"We decided," Trina said after a short silence, "that we weren't going to try to go to Florida. We weren't going to go and see her. But we never considered that we'd change things and that she'd come here."

"That's not an answer," Tommy said with a slightly teasing smile.

"I want to tell her," Will said.

"I want to tell her, too," Trina told him, "but that doesn't mean that we should."

"We've already messed up causality, what harm could it possibly do? I want to talk to my mum!"

"You're the one that changed things. We had one simple message to deliver, but you couldn't leave it at that. You had to go and say things you shouldn't and for all we know messed up our whole future." It was amazing how they could turn from being so obviously close and become this feuding pair in a matter of seconds. Tommy wondered what the hell had just happened.

"You always think you know best!" Will snapped, "How do you know I haven't made things better? How do you know we won't get back to find out Dad's a millionaire?"

"How do you know there's even a future to get back to?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Billy's not got the time portal working again to get us back home."

"You don't know anything!"

Will stood up and storm off. There were tears in his eyes the anger wasn't able to hold back completely. Tommy watched him go, wondering if he should go after him. How could he be such a good parent if he didn't even know whether to follow his son or leave him alone to get control of his emotions back? Kim would be arriving in Angel Grove that evening, and he hadn't the faintest idea what to say to her.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jason was walking through the park to where he'd been told Tommy was. They'd barely managed to get a minute to talk with everything that had happened recently, and Jason wanted desperately to ask him more questions about the whole business with the ninjas. Especially since the others had finally remembered to tell him he'd said something after they'd found him. There had, admittedly, been a lot going on, but Jason was still annoyed they'd waited this long before telling him.

But what could Orasella mean?

Zordon had no idea, which meant Jason didn't know where to start looking. The library held no answers, but he hadn't really expected it to. It was strange to suddenly realise that Zordon wasn't omniscient. The universe was vast enough that even he couldn't know it all.

So Jason was looking for Tommy, hoping he might have heard something when he was a prisoner that would lead to answers. A part of him was warning the rest that he might want to stop. He remembered the twins' warning, remembered the tape. But he still couldn't help wondering if they were a trick. He didn't need to know everything, just enough. It wasn't like that could really bring about the end of the world.

He saw Tommy, sitting with the twins. So much for his hope to speak to Tommy alone. He really didn't want to be asking questions about the ninjas with those kids there.

Jason was close enough that he could hear what they were saying and he stopped short, recognising the word.

"Something happened," Will was saying, "that allowed a seed to get past the gem of Orasella and into the minds of one of the order. It took years, but finally she was able to turn him. And he gave the gem to her."

The twins were a part of this whole thing. He'd suspected from Tommy and Billy's story that there was more going on than they'd actually said. But this was more than that. Jason had to figure out a way to get Tommy on his own so he could find out what was really happening. He couldn't trust the twins. The tape could have been faked and he had only their word that they really were from the future.

This could all just be a trick to keep him from learning about Orasella.

They must have heard him, because Tommy turned round. He greeted him with a slight wave and a, "Hey, bro." Then he looked concerned. "What's up?"

Jason wondered what he should say. Should he just ask to speak to Tommy alone or wait a bit and think about what he'd heard? Should he demand that the twins come clean?

"Have you figured out what to tell Kimberly?" he asked. It was a reasonable question for him to ask and should hopefully distract Tommy from wondering what was really going on in his head. It worked out better than he'd hoped, because the twins got into a heated argument that ended up with Will storming off.

Jason blinked after the departing figure, wondering quite what had happened. He hadn't noticed anything that should have warranted the much of a display of temper.

Trina sighed, "I'd better go after him. Otherwise, he'll just end up sulking for a month." She stood and walked off, leaving Jason beneath the tree with Tommy.

"I don't know how I'm going to cope," Tommy muttered.

"You've got all of us to help you," Jason said. Tommy managed a smile. There was a pause and Jason judged that enough time had passed for a complete and utter shift in conversation.

"I was wondering about when you were with the ninjas," Jason said.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Well, the others told me I said something. I don't remember it, but apparently I said, 'Orasella'. I was wondering if maybe you heard anything like that when you were their prisoner."

"No. I didn't hear anything like that," Tommy said.

Jason simply nodded, but his mind was racing. Tommy had just lied to him. He'd just looked him in the eye and lied. Jason would trust Tommy with his life and would believe anything he said under any other circumstances. And he had just lied.

The ninjas had the ability to alter people's minds. They'd done it to him to make him forget. Maybe they'd done something to Tommy, changed the way he thought somehow. Whatever had happened, Jason now knew he couldn't trust Tommy anymore. Not until this was over.

Not until he knew the truth.


	13. Announcement

A new science fiction thriller is coming out this month.

Child of the Hive


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